What is better for gaming and in general, 8GB of DDR3 running at 1066mhz or 6GB of DDR3 running at 1333mhz?

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H
You want paired memory so it can run in dual channel mode. This will have more of an impact on performance than a faster memory clock, although ideally you'd want both.
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The_Doctor

The_Doctor

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May 19, 2013
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First off It Depends on the Speed of your MB if your MB can support 1333mhz. If it cant 1333mhz will be no different to 1066mhz If it cant you may as well stop reading here.
Second though faster ram will always better for gaming the amount must take priority as 8gb of slower ram will be still better than 6 of the faster variety however if you plan to up grade in the future go with the 1333mhz if your not going to upgrade go with 8gb Duel channelled.
The Doctor
 
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4745454b

4745454b

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8gb of slower ram will be still better than 6 of the faster variety
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I'd disagree. Most games will use up to 2 or 2.5GBs max. The faster ram should provide a very small boost. Most of the 8GB won't even be used. Sitting on my desktop I'm currently using just under 3GBs of ram. Even if I fired up a big game, I'd still be using less then 6GB. And if I needed more, I could close some of the program I have open.

6GB is an "odd" amount of ram to have though. Is the budget really so tight the extra $10 can't be found for 8GBs of 1333 at least? Last I saw 8GBs of 1600MHz was around $40-$50. Assuming you are in the USA.
 
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The_Doctor

The_Doctor

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I suppose your right most games wont ever use that amount of ram so faster might be better it just depends on amount of background processes hes running and if he wants to do anything other than gaming. Second I Agree 6 Gb is rather odd as that would be 3Gb x 2 ( At least I hope hes using duel channel) and it probably would be better to go to a standard amount. Finally all this speed wont matter if his MB isnt up to the grade though a presume most modern MB this day and age will support 1333mhz .
 
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H

helz IT

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You want paired memory so it can run in dual channel mode. This will have more of an impact on performance than a faster memory clock, although ideally you'd want both.
 
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Solution
opio

opio

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May 10, 2013
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I'm asking for my buddy who has a DDR3 motherboard and has the choice of:

4x2GB @ 1066mhz

OR

2x2GB + 2x1GB @ 1333mhz


we will be putting all sticks in symmetrically


Then this begs a second question:

for MY computer I have a ddr2 motherboard that has 4x2GB sticks @ 1066mhz
is there a setting I need to change to make sure it is running in duel channel mode?


P.S. I know some of these may be n00b questions

double P.S. my mobo as it is is an old (old meaning like 2009) hp pavilion and when I opened up CPU-Z it says Dram frequency is only at 400. Does this mean that even though my mobo is a DDR2 mobo it must be able to support the faster speeds? Did I buy 4 1066mhz sticks for no reason?
 
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opio

opio

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we already have the ram sticks
 
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geofelt

geofelt

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With a amd cpu, ram speed matters.
With intel sandy and ivy cpu's speed matters little.
Games, by themselves can't use more than 2-3gb, so more than 4gb is not needed.
I do like more since ram is cheap. Windows can keep more code around for instant reuse.

One problem with the 6gb set is that the odd 2gb will operate in single channel mode.
Still, single channel mode is not a biggie.

4 stick kits are not good either. It is harder for a motherboard to manage 4 sticks vs. 2.
I might look for a 8gb kit of 2 x 4gb in 1066 or 1333 speeds.

 
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H

helz IT

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It will run in dual channel mode automatically, although you should be able to confirm it somewhere in the BIOS. Also, you can double whatever CPUz is telling you your memory speed is, so its actually running at 800mhz.

Depending on your motherboard, you might be able to increase the speed manually to 1066, also in the BIOS. You'd have to look up your specific motherboard's specs online to know for sure.

 
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